Private Teacher For A Day

[Kahlil Noble]

Teaching was important for a Jedi to do. Especially now that he was a Master. Kahlil let out a sigh as he walked down the halls of the New Cov temple. Rebuilt, refurbished. It was a beautiful place. Perfect for training young Jedi. Well, maybe not younglings. Padawans for sure. With the monstrous creatures that lurked in the jungle younglings might be too young. Still, he was here to teach. A smile pulled at his lips as he glanced to the fountain at the core. Serene as always. Fond memories of when he found this place with Valery Noble went through his mind.

And her smile when she saw this place rebuilt.

He shook his head, pushing the thoughts aside as he wandered into the empty training room he'd booked for the day. Silas Westgard , a padawan Valery actually knew, was his student for the day. The subject? Soresu. In his mind, it was the perfect style for Jedi. An important style that all should at least learn the basics of. He crossed the room, looking through the training drones to make sure they were in working order, then.. Waited. The Padawan should be there soon enough.

 

[Silas Westgard]

Since arriving at the New Cov temple it had been a joy to train here, not only was it peaceful but it also brought the best of him in many ways. He had already been here for a few days to get used to his new surroundings, as well as using the time for his own personal development like fitness. Today, he was meant to be doing a training session with Valery Noble , but unfortunately, she wasn't able to make it. Instead, she was replaced by her husband Kahlil Noble , who used to be a former sith until he strayed away from the dark path.

Clad in his lightweight training gear, he slowly made his way into the room and stood before, Kalhil who seemingly towered above him. In his usual serious and respectable manner, he offered a short bow to the man, his head lifting back up to look him right in the eyes.

"Pleasure to meet you, Master Kahlil. I believe you will be teaching me today instead of Master Noble?" he questioned, choosing not to dive into the change just in case it was a personal issue. Even so, he still hoped everything was alright with Valery.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"Technically Master Noble is still training you." Yeah that joke was meant more for himself, but he smiled regardless, offering a bow of his own. Kahlil motioned to the room then. Despite how tall he was, he did seem to try and shrink his presence. Seem less intimidating than the rest of his family was known to be. "We'll start right away, if you'd like. I don't train too many things, so bare with me if I'm a little rust."

Silas Westgard

 

[Silas Westgard]

Silas couldn't help but smile at the joke. Recently, Master Noble had married Kahlil Noble and took up the famous last name. Whatever the case, he was still sure to be trained by a Master Noble who was a skilled warrior in the force. Looking up to his new teacher Silas wasn't as intimidated as most, nor did he seem scared of the former Sith. Instead, he looked focused and calm with the training at hand. It wasn't like Master Kahlil was going to snap and try and kill him at any point anyway, the man had long since moved on from that.

"I'm ready to start now, Master Kahlil. And please, I'm sure anything trained by you will be a great help in my development. No matter how small it may be." encouraged the padawan, who slowly folded his arms and kept the serious manner he was known for.

"Those training drones over there will be a part of it I'm guessing?" he mentioned to them with a small nod.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"They certainly will. How much have you already been taught about lightsaber combat? Would you say yourself proficient?" Kahlil wandered over towards the drones in question, his attention on them. Going through the settings again to keep his hands busy while he spoke. "And of course, have you read up on any lightsaber forms?"

 

[Silas Westgard]

Kahlil Noble

"I'd say so Master" Silas examined the master go over to the drones and mess around with them, almost as if he was adjusting the difficulty or something along those lines. The padawan smoothly took out the lightsaber and held it loosely in his right hand, preparing for the exercise to start on Kahlil's mark.

"I've trained in Shii-Cho and Makashi so far, but I haven't really studied the others as much as I should. I've only been trying to refine Mikashi lately before moving onto something new"

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"Fair. Makashi is a intensive form, one you'll likely try to perfect your whole life to try and become a master. Though, it's always good to know your options. Though I'm more.. I'd rather focus on the philosophy of what I'm going to teach you today. It's useful, even if you don't use the form." Kahlil clicked on one of the drones, letting it float up before him. Then turned to toss Silas Westgard a training helmet. One to blind. Deafen to all but the commlink the Master had on him. He smiled.

"Soresu, the most defensive form of them all. Tell me what you know of the form. Put the helmet on and step here, center of the room."

 

[Silas Westgard]

Kahlil Noble

Silas nodded along with everything Master Kahlil was saying, providing him his undivided attention as he activated one of the drones that floated before him now. Giving the drone a curious tilt of his head he managed to catch the helmet with his left hand "Soresu, I have read about that style before..." Silas walked to the center of the room and placed the helmet on his head, deafening and blinding him in the process.

"Form 3, otherwise known as Soresu is the ultimate expression of nonaggression in a style. It's mainly used as a way of defending ourselves without directly attacking, like deflecting blaster fire and holding a resilient guard against an opponent," he explained back to the master calmly, keeping still and unfazed of the exercise ahead.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"That's correct, but there's more to it than just defense. There's a state of mind needed to get to that point, especially if you want to help protect others." Kahlil spoke through the com, starting to circle around where Silas Westgard was standing. The drone activated then, slowly starting to float and move. "Eye of the storm. While chaos is around you, you become the calm center. Trust the Force, feel it. Trust in it. Your instincts will not lead you astray."

Then the first shot came. The drone turned, rotating through the air before letting out a shot for the Padawan's thigh. Nothing actually harmful, or even painful. But enough to be felt.

 

[Silas Westgard]

"Not only does your guard need to be strong but your mentality too" he responded through the coms, confirming to himself what Kahlil Noble said beforehand. Silas ignited his blue lightsaber and slowly brought it up In front of him, his right leg extended back to make a defensive guard. He nodded to what Kahlil was saying to him, keeping himself calm and trying to allow the force to guide him in his defense. Although, it didn't seem he was prepared for the shot to come.

Taken off guard the first shot hit him in the thigh, making him flinch as it made contact with his leg. Sighing from the mistake, he shook his head and recomposed his stance, determined not to make the same mistake again

The padawan took a deep breath and relaxed, allowing the force to flow freely through his body like a calm stream.

"Let the force guide you Silas, relax..."

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"No, not strong. At peace." Kahlil stopped his wandering, taking position behind Silas Westgard . Leaving the drone on the other side of the Padawan. The Master clasped his hands behind his back, watching patiently. "There are parts of yourself you must accept. The good, the bad. Your strength, your weakness. Accept it all, and let yourself truly trust the Force." It was as much a meditative center as it was a style. Kahlil no longer moved, but the drone did. Zipping through the air. Firing. Not very quickly, and certainly not that many shots, but enough to pull Silas's attention.

 

[Silas Westgard]

Silas could sense Kahlil Noble stop behind him and observe, patiently explaining the very ways of the style he was trying to learn. The teen nodded to the wisdom he was saying, mentally noting down that he had to use every last part of himself in order to fully grasp the force. Taking a deep breath his body seemed to loosen up and act calm as if he was allowing the force to flow through every crevice of his stature. All was silent other than the faint sounds of the drone flying before him, and a sudden shot that would fly towards his shoulder.

In a fast motion, his lightsaber tilts to the side and deflects the shot away into a nearby wall. The small achievement didn't make him lose focus though. For now, he kept the same guard and awaited the next imminent shot to fly his way.

"You need to welcome the force like an old friend and trust it even with your darkest of traits..." he said to himself openly, his full attention on Master Kalil and the training at hand.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"Almost. But, not as an old friend." Good. Another drone activated as Kahlil watched the shot be deflected. In truth, this part of the lesson was more akin to the basics of Shi-Cho than Soresu. But that where the other drones came in. They moved, flanking around Silas Westgard . Firing at the same pace as before, but at the same time. Different parts of the body. Trying to force him to make a choice.

A trap, given the idea of the style is to feel, not think.

"You. You are the Force. The Force is you."

 

[Silas Westgard]

"Your best friend," he said to try and redeem himself from the wrong answer. Standing there silently he couldn't hear or see a thing, but the force inside was guiding Silas by the hand. He needed to relax and let it flow through his body freely, trusting it to prevent him from harm. Thankfully, it was doing just that. He felt another presence flank to the left while the other kept in front of him, preparing to fire their harmless blasters once more.

Without warning they shot again, the far left shooting at his leg while the other at his chest. Silas snapped his head to the droid in front of him, swiftly moving his left leg forward to avoid the shot and using the lightsaber to deflect the harmless blaster bolt aimed at his chest against the wall. He moved back into a stance and kept still for now, preparing for another enemy to enter the fray.

" Kahlil Noble , how long did it take for you to perfect this?"

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"Heh, saying I've perfected it is a bit of a stretch. But.. Ever since I got a lightsaber. It's ah, well. I'm sure you've heard where I started. As a Sith I never actually had a lightsaber. Even as a Jedi, for a while." He glanced to the saber on his hip. Not his first. No, that one was still on his ship. For a moment the Jedi frowned, remembering back to what he'd done to the Solari crystal. How hurt it still was. He let out a breath before turning his attention back to Silas Westgard , nodding.

"You've got the right idea, though. Small, controlled movements. Save your energy. Conserve your strength." The third drone joined in now, all three swirling around the Padawan. Firing faster, more often. Trying to push him. "Find yourself at the center. You are the calm. The eye of the storm."

 

[Silas Westgard]

"I never knew that, so technically you're still new regarding lightsaber combat?" he said with a tilt of his head, intrigued by how a former sith with little lightsaber training was so good already. Kahlil Noble and Valery Noble were leading figures in combat when it came to a lightsaber, training with them at all was always beneficial to his development.

Silas gave a brief nod to his orders again and felt a third drone entering the fray now. All three surrounded him now, one at the front and two on either side. After one another they shot, the first swiftly firing a shot to his arm from the left. He swiftly swung his lightsaber and deflected past Kahlil by inches, before snapping his head to the other which aimed for the head. Putting a foot back he suddenly turned his body to the side at the perfect moment, letting the shot skim by his nose while the other prepared a shot at his ribs.

Knowing there wasn't time to switch his saber to the other hand he had to throw himself backward. Avoiding the shot narrowly, he did well to keep himself from falling to the mats, but that wasn't stopping him from stumbling backward towards Kahlil uncontrollably.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

New? Kahlil let out a laugh, one he kept from the com. Surprise, really. "No no, I've been doing this for.. Uh, Twenty years or so? I was around your age when I ran from the Sith, but I didn't end up a Jedi right away. I learned how to hold a blaster and run a ship before I picked up a saber." The Jedi didn't so much as flinch as the shot went by his head. Just as Silas Westgard was learning to do, he trusted the Force. Though as the boy came stumbling back he lifted a hand, gently pushing him forward to keep him from falling flat.

"Careful. You want a stable base. Leaving the ground makes it easier to knock you around, so try to keep your feet planted."

 

[Silas Westgard]

"Sorry, Master Kahlil..." Silas grumbled as he walked forwards a few more paces to gain some more ground from the former sith. The fact that he had run away from the dark lifestyle really gave him a new perspective of the man. He must have been mentally sound to get through such a thing, especially when the sith were on his back every minute of his life.

"Nothing too fancy Silas..." he said openly to himself as the three droids approached from different angles. Quickly, he swiped his saber forwards to send a shot flying to the roof, before stepping back to rotate his body to the right and let the bolt zoom past his chest. The last droid sneakily stayed behind him and fired into his back this time. Silas seemed to stay still for a brief moment before suddenly twirling in a 180 rotation, swinging his saber around to deflect it into the floor with impressive instincts.

The padawan breathed steadily and lowered the saber to hang loosely in his grip, pondering for a few moments before he spoke "How did you first fair when you did this exercise?" he said, using the brief break as a chance to loosen up his legs.

Kahlil Noble​

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"At the second drone I lost grip on my saber and nearly impaled my master with it." No point in hiding anything. Kahlil hummed in surprise as he watched Silas Westgard whip around to block the sneakier shot from behind. "Then not so well after, anyway. I wasn't a swordsman. Still am not, really. Likely why I use such a passive and defensive style now that I think about it."

 

[Silas Westgard]

"I see, it also appears to be a useful style when it comes to battling a sith. I presume most times they're quite aggressive, so wearing them out and counter attacking when they're tired seems like a good tactic," he explained, lightly twirling the lit saber in his hand. Even though Kahlil Noble downplayed his ability he was still as impressive as most force users. It was certainly possible the master was being humble, and not wanting to boast about his skill. Either way, Silas respected him as a fierce warrior.

Turning his body to Kahlil, he seemed to have a burning question to ask him before he moved onto a higher difficulty "If you don't mind me asking master, what made you turn your back on the sith?" the boy questioned curiously, wanting to know more of his dark past.